


Working (It) Out

by Lovespie (Snarryeyes)



Category: Star Trek RPF
Genre: Humor, M/M, Muscles, Smut, Strength Kink
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-22
Updated: 2016-12-22
Packaged: 2018-09-11 03:34:55
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,186
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8952298
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Snarryeyes/pseuds/Lovespie
Summary: Zach can't help but notice Chris' new physique during the third Trek press tour, which proves very... distracting.





	

**Author's Note:**

  * For [semperama](https://archiveofourown.org/users/semperama/gifts).



> Semper gave me this idea aaaaages ago (srsly, it's frankly embarrassing how long it's taken me to write the thing). Anyway, this is for all your help and support with my pinto (and Trek) fic endeavours, and for putting up with my many anxiety attacks and brain melts this year. Merry Christmas, bb! <333

While press tours definitely had their perks—including but not limited to exploring a multitude of foreign cultures—they also involved long days of being confined to one seat in one room, answering mostly the same questions. So it was always important for Zach to fit some exercise into his downtime, both to stay in shape and to help with any residual jetlag. He had learned early on that Chris shared this philosophy, as he did so many others, and they had fallen into the habit of working out together every morning before the day’s schedule swept them off to charm the numerous press representatives. Or rather they had during the previous two press tours.

Today was the first proper day of press tour number three and, judging by the lack of response to Zach’s repeated knocks on Chris’ hotel room, Chris was either sleeping like the dead or he’d made other plans. Zach was halfway through typing out a text message when Karl appeared down the hallway.

“If you’re looking for Chris, last I heard he was heading down to the gym.”

Zach turned to look at him, his fingers hovering over the unfinished message. He wasn’t surprised that Karl was up early, nor that he looked perfectly well rested; since they were starting in Australia, Karl had only had to hop on a short flight from his native New Zealand and had thus avoided the perils of travelling through multiple time zones. “Oh. Okay, thanks.”

Karl inserted his key card into the slot of his door with a smirk. “And there I was thinking you two were joined at the hip.”

Zach pocketed his phone, sparing Karl a mildly withering glance before heading for the elevators.

 

Sure enough, Chris was on the treadmill in the hotel’s gym, and judging by the amount of sweat covering his loose gray t-shirt, he’d already been there for some time.

“Hey, I’ve been looking for you.”

Chris looked up, but didn’t slow his pace. “Oh?”

“I thought we could go for a morning workout together, but clearly you beat me to it.”

“Oh. Yeah… sorry.” Chris offered an apologetic smile. “I’ve kind of got used to early starts after filming in England.” He tapped the machine, gradually lowering the speed until it came to a stop, and stepped off to grab his bottle of water. “Your turn.”

Zach dropped his towel onto a nearby bench and stepped onto the treadmill. “How far do I have to run to catch up with you?”

Halfway through drinking, Chris shrugged. “A few miles maybe? I’ve been testing out all of the equipment here; the treadmill was last on the list.”

“So what are you going to do now?”

Chris shrugged again, grinning. “Improvise.”

Keeping up a quick but steady pace on the treadmill proved fairly easy when Chris was chatting beside him in-between push-ups and sit-ups. It felt easy; familiar. And then Chris decided to take his shirt off.

The next thing Zach knew, he was on his ass, having stumbled and subsequently been thrown off the back of the machine.

“Fuck, man. Are you okay?”

Chris’ shoes came into view first, along with his bare ankles, and Zach concentrated on those while he attempted to salvage some small part of his dignity. “Yeah, I’m fine,” he said, waving away Chris’ concern. Once he was back up, though, he couldn’t very well keep staring at Chris’ feet, which meant looking higher up to what had caused his fall in the first place. And fuck, that torso was even more impressive close up.

Zach had known that Chris hadn’t bulked up for this Trek outing like he had for the previous movies, and he was also well aware that he’d found a new personal trainer to put him through his paces and keep him in prime physical condition for the many roles he was undertaking. But since they’d filmed very few scenes together, during which Chris’ shirt was always very firmly on, he hadn’t yet seen the fruits of his labor. And seeing that evidence for himself was another thing entirely. Chris was, there was no other word for it, fucking _ripped_.

It wasn’t entirely fair, Zach thought, that Chris now had the face of a Greek god _and_ the physique to match, especially since it was provoking a powerfully visceral reaction. It was all Zach could do not to reach out and touch, lick, maybe even bite… he really wasn’t sure how he was going to get out of there without giving in to temptation. It had been quite a while since their last foray into anything beyond friendship; he wasn’t even sure if it was on Chris’ radar anymore.

Zach forced his gaze upwards to Chris’ face, adopting what he hoped was a casual good-humored expression. “I guess I’m still a bit jetlagged.” He was suddenly aware of the warmth of Chris’ hand on his arm, which must have reached out to steady him and then stayed there.

Chris squeezed his arm one final time before letting go, offering a sympathetic smile. “Time zones are a killer, right? But please don’t go injuring yourself. I don’t think I could get through all those interviews without you.”

Zach didn’t doubt it—Chris had always faded fast when it came to press days, which was half the reason why they had devised so many ways to make the time pass more quickly—but nevertheless the genuine warmth that suffused those words tugged the corners of his mouth upwards. “I’ll try not to.”

“You want to go for a proper run instead? We can sneak out the back way.”

Figuring that would at least force Chris to put his shirt back on, Zach quickly agreed. “Yeah. Sounds good.”

 

They headed for a park not too far from the hotel, where various paths criss-crossed over open grass and beneath broad trees. It turned out to be mostly empty, which Zach was thankful for. They had caps and sunglasses, but that was hardly a foolproof disguise. 

“This is better than a treadmill, right?” Chris asked as they started at a leisurely pace.

Zach hummed, thankful that Chris had come up with the suggestion. “Much.”

“Okay, let’s see what you’re made of.”

That was all the warning Zach had before Chris took off. Zach tried his best to keep up with him, and he did for a while, but by the third circuit of the park he was lagging behind. And with that came the view of Chris’ ass, every delectable inch of it clearly displayed beneath material pulled taut with each stride. So Zach lifted his gaze higher, to where Chris’ sweat-soaked shirt clung to his broad shoulders, to the muscular arms powering his stride, only for his thoughts to betray him once again with visions of being crowded against a wall and held in place by those arms. Zach had never thought of himself as sexually submissive—not in the slightest—but Chris’ new physique was definitely testing that conviction; so much so that by the fifth circuit, Zach was ready to throw himself in the nearest ornamental pond.

“Had enough?” Chris called, jogging back to him when he eventually staggered to a halt. Zach’s competitive side wanted to wipe the victorious grin off Chris’ face, but Chris looked like he could keep going for quite a while and Zach wasn’t sure he had another lap in him. It didn’t help that the air temperature was rapidly rising.

“Heat stroke isn’t on my to-do list,” Zach replied, trying his best not to sound too out of breath. “Besides we have a press junket to attend, remember?”

That did wipe the grin off Chris’ face as he let out a groan. “Killjoy.”

 

They grabbed a couple of bottles of water from a kiosk on their way back to the hotel, taking long sips in-between conversing. Chris had his shirt off again even before he reached his hotel room, too busy enthusing about his new training regime to notice Zach’s gaze drifting away from his face.

“Seriously, dude,” Chris continued, entering his hotel room with Zach a step behind. “It’s a whole other level.”

“Maybe I should ask him to come to New York,” Zach joked weakly.

“Or you could move back to L.A,” Chris countered, flashing a grin over his shoulder to soften the words. They’d had that argument too many times already. Chris tossed his sodden shirt aside and started to remove his shoes. “Mark’s really put me through my paces this past year, that’s for sure. And the clubbell training has done wonders.”

“I can see,” Zach said without thinking, busy watching the play of muscles beneath Chris skin as he worked.

Glancing up, Chris caught him staring. A grin appeared as realization set in, his eyes dancing as he straightened up. “This look is really doing something for you, isn’t it?”

“Huh?” Zach was going for innocent deflection, but it came out more like a whimper. He sighed, abandoning all pretence. “It really is.”

Chris approached him slowly, rather like a predator stalking its prey. Zach didn’t move but his heart rate increased ten-fold, especially when Chris pressed in close to within inches of his face. 

“So… what do you want?”

Zach swallowed hard, unusually lost for words. He hadn’t wanted to presume that anything would happen this time—in fact, he’d been fully prepared to stay firmly on the side of friendship—but there wasn’t a trace of hesitation in Chris’ eyes. On the contrary, there was an intensity that brought a wealth of sensual memories flooding to the surface.

“Come on, Zach,” Chris urged, pressing his thigh against Zach’s groin and the hard line of his erection with a knowing gleam—bastard. He brushed his lips against the corner of Zach’s mouth for good measure. “Tell me, I want to hear it.”

Zach gave in with a strangled moan, grabbing the back of Chris’ neck to catch those full lips as they began to retreat. “I want you to fuck me,” he panted against them in a rush, unwilling to pull back any further. “Lift me up, pin me against the wall, and fuck me hard.”

“Jesus,” Chris breathed, closing his eyes briefly as he rested his forehead against Zach’s. “I can definitely get on board with that.”

 

The drawn-out, though admittedly necessary, preparations were entirely worth it once Chris had Zach up against the cool plaster, legs hooked over bulging forearms, well and truly fucking his brains out. How Chris managed to not only hold all of his weight, but also maintain his rhythm without breaking their kiss, Zach didn’t know. All he knew was that it was quickly climbing the ranks of his best sexual encounter. It had been a little strange at first, being so out of control, but that feeling was quickly eclipsed by the sensation of those muscles bunching against his skin, driving his arousal up to dizzying heights. Zach felt like a puppet, with Chris pulling all of his strings. It was nothing short of intoxicating.

“You’re so fucking hot like this,” Chris gasped, pulling back to pant cool air across Zach’s wet swollen lips. “I’m not going to last…”

Zach groaned, eyeing the droplets of sweat slowly trickling down Chris’ sinfully toned chest and wishing he could lick them off. “Me neither.” He dropped one hand from Chris’ neck to wrap it around his aching cock, pumping it in time with Chris’ thrusts. “Do it.”

Adjusting his grip on sweat-slicked skin, Chris drove in harder and faster. “Fuck, yeah… that’s it. That’s—”

Zach surged forward to meet Chris’ mouth, smothering the rest of his words and the deep moan that followed. It caught in his throat, merging with his own as he erupted over his hand in what seemed to be a never-ending release.

Chris breathed a long and slow, “Fuck,” against his mouth, to which Zach could only hum in agreement. Fading pleasure was soon eclipsed by discomfort, though, and Zach could feel the tremble of overworked muscles as Chris carefully let him down. Zach curled an arm around his waist to keep him in place.

“We really need to get ready,” Chris said with a smile, pushing closer despite his words. “You want to share a shower?”

“As much as I’d love to, I need fresh clothes and they’re in my room. Besides,” he added, nipping Chris’ bottom lip, “I have a feeling you’d distract me.”

“Maybe a little.”

“Maybe a lot.”

“Like enough to fall off a treadmill or…?”

Zach shoved Chris’ chest, but there was barely any strength behind the gesture. “Asshole.”

Grinning wide enough to set off the crinkles around his eyes, Chris leaned in for a final kiss. “Rain check on the shower?”

“Definitely.”

 

Walking back to his room in the sweat-soaked outfit he’d reluctantly pulled back on, trying not to grimace at the cold damp material against his skin and the tenderness in certain areas, Zach once again bumped into Karl going the other way.

“Good work-out?”

Zach smiled and kept on walking. “The best.”


End file.
